# I Pit Babale **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [April 7, 2025, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738 "2025-04-07T14:59:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 58
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1141 "2026-09-15T15:57:22Z")
I love your fantasy version of me! It’s always interesting to see how others fantasize about me. Sometimes a bit disturbing too, but I can handle it. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1142 "2026-09-15T15:58:38Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > If you read the article, and not just the two paragraphs i quoted because they mentioned Piker, it was clear that the article was about Mamdani being criticized for being Muslim. Do you think that’s the only reason to criticize Mamdani, or do you think that the fact that he campaigned with someone who said that America deserved 9/11 is in fact worthy of criticism? I honestly can’t tell what you think at this point. > [@puzzlegal](#): > > Also, you said above that the Mamdani campaign paid to fly piker to his events. (And didn’t reply to my request for a citation.) Now you are saying they weren’t even on stage together. What, exactly, is their connection? How are those two statements at all contradictory? Yes, they weren’t on a stage at the same time, but they were at events together, and Piker campaigned for Mamdani (and El Sayed). > [@puzzlegal](#): > > Because if it’s just that Mamdani has some embarrassing supporters, well, so do 100% of politicians who make the national news. Are we gonna start applying that standard to politicians we don’t like, too? ---
**Author:** ![Thing.Fish](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thing.fish/32/9168_2.png) [@Thing.Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing.Fish)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1143 "2026-09-15T15:58:59Z")
Googling, I can’t find any evidence that they ever “campaigned together”, although Piker certainly did actively campaign for Mamdani. He also had him as a guest on his podcast once, and was in the audience at one of his rallies and attended his election night celebration, both of which were open t. So, they’re joined at the hip, basically. 🙄 > After learning of Mamdani’s victory, Piker can be seen looking directly at the camera, and sarcastically taunting Cuomo, saying, “Hey, what happened? I thought that ‘9/11. Hasan … Hasan loves 9/11.’ What happened? What happened? I thought that was a successful campaign strategy.” Piker went on to make a series of lewd remarks, using expletives to refer to and address former Governor Cuomo. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1144 "2026-09-15T16:02:10Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > > [@puzzlegal](#): > > > > Because if it’s just that Mamdani has some embarrassing supporters, well, so do 100% of politicians who make the national news. > > Are we gonna start applying that standard to politicians we don’t like, too? Yes, at least, i have consistently held that standard. If Mamdani is paying Piker to show up, that says something about Mamdani. But if Piker is off in his own and says he likes Mamdani, well, you might ask why, but there are often reasons for bad people to like good politicians. I’ve supported politicians who were photographed with nobodies who turned out to be awful, too. Because it’s sometimes the job of politicians to pose with strangers. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1145 "2026-09-15T16:03:22Z")
I want Babale to give some evidence that Mamdani is reaching out to Piker before i give a shit. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1146 "2026-09-15T16:06:30Z")
I mean, Barak Obama and Jeremiah Wright never shared a campaign stage, but there was certainly some political clean-up required: [Jeremiah Wright controversy - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeremiah_Wright_controversy) ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1147 "2026-09-15T16:10:32Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > but there was certainly some political clean-up required: [Jeremiah Wright controversy - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeremiah_Wright_controversy) Yes, because even then we were living in the stupid timeline. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1148 "2026-09-15T16:11:07Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I’ve supported politicians who were photographed with nobodies who turned out to be awful, too. Because it’s sometimes the job of politicians to pose with strangers. Let me rephrase that. There are politicians i intensely disliked who had done that. But i didn’t think the photograph itself was evidence against them, because that’s just part of their job. I disliked them for the policies and their votes, not for the people who wanted a part of them. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1149 "2026-09-15T16:21:58Z")
A photo is one thing. A sit-down and podcast is another. Politicians climb in bed with people they want to later forget all the time. It’s how the game is played. Everybody knows. It just seems dishonest to pretend like it didn’t happen, it was just that one time, and it meant nothing. Especially by those who weren’t even included in the tryst. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1150 "2026-09-15T16:25:36Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > It’s always interesting to see how others fantasize about me. Sometimes a bit disturbing too, but I can handle it. JFC. Get over yourself. FFS. 😆 ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1151 "2026-09-15T16:28:15Z")
But I’m so awesome! How could I get over someone so awesome? ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1152 "2026-09-15T16:31:32Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I want Babale to give some evidence that Mamdani is reaching out to Piker before i give a shit. I feel like I am being gaslit. Maybe that’s not your intention, but that’s definitely how it feels. Can we even agree that campaigning with someone who said that America deserved 9/11 is in fact worthy or criticism? [Here’s an article about the role Hasan played in a number of democratic campaigns.](https://archive.is/20260818224439/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-06-24/nyc-elections-hasan-piker-helps-boost-claire-valdez-darializa-avila-chevalier) > [@](#): > > But while the provocative comments have grabbed headlines, candidates and operatives seeking Piker’s assistance say he puts in the work to help their campaigns. > When Valdez was a little-known candidate vying against longtime community organizer and politician Antonio Reynoso, Piker flew to New York to go bowling with the candidate on his livestream. He’s helped phone bank for candidates and is in regular touch with the DSA, while noting he does not take direction from the party. > **Piker also says he texts with Mamdani, whose mayoral bid he aggressively supported.** Emphasis mine. Not only has Mamdani not denied this, we now know he and his staff use Signal to communicate with influencers off the record: > **[Mamdani’s new NYC ecosystem of friendly influencers and public messaging.](https://www.cjr.org/tow_center/mayor-mamdanis-friendly-influencers-and-the-funding-of-public-messaging-in-new-york-city.php)** > > A look inside the new New York ecosystem. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1153 "2026-09-15T16:36:31Z")
I blame the parents. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1154 "2026-09-15T16:46:06Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > A photo is one thing. A sit-down and podcast is another. Is it? Should politicians only appear on podcasts of people they agree with 100%? Should they only take interviews with friendly interviewers? ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1155 "2026-09-15T16:49:45Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > Can we even agree that campaigning with someone who said that America deserved 9/11 is in fact worthy or criticism? That very much depends on what you mean by “campaigning with”. And it also depends when and if the someone walked back that statement, and depends a little on exactly what his claim was. I worked for 6 years in the shadow of the WTC. Half my family was in NYC during 9/11. A woman i worked with was killed when the first tower collapsed. (She’d made it to the ground floor, but stayed to help the wounded.) My brother watched his office, close enough to the towers to be ignited from the heat, burn in real time, on TV. A lot of his coworkers were killed. He and his then-wife spent the next two weeks attending funerals. My cousin saw the planes hit the tower, through the window of the conference room he was with. They were shocked, but didn’t cancel the meeting after the first one. After the second they evacuated. I spent the day on the Internet, tracking down friends who worked in the towers. (Most turned out to be at an actuarial event in New Orleans. But I’ve never before or since been more relieved to see a banal post from a friend online.) Yes, it was a horrible thing. Yes, the people who committed that act were evil. And also, the details matter. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1156 "2026-09-15T16:52:15Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > > [@QuickSilver](#): > > > > A photo is one thing. A sit-down and podcast is another. > > Is it? Should politicians only appear on podcasts of people they agree with 100%? Should they only take interviews with friendly interviewers? No and no. That’s a ridiculous standard to hold politicians to. ---
**Author:** ![Thing.Fish](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thing.fish/32/9168_2.png) [@Thing.Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing.Fish)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1157 "2026-09-15T16:52:23Z")
Mamdani critics being totally not racist: > A Republican member of the New York City Council claimed she and other critics of Mayor Zohran Mamdani aren’t “racists” for wanting Mamdani to stay away from Friday’s 25th anniversary of 9/11. > > Meanwhile, in responding to socialist influencer Hasan Piker’s claim that not wanting Mamdani at the somber ceremony is a “demented racist viewpoint,” Councilwoman Vickie Paladino urged the[New Jersey-born](https://www.politicon.com/speaker/hasan-piker/ "https://www.politicon.com/speaker/hasan-piker/") Piker to “go back to where you came from.” ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1158 "2026-09-15T16:54:41Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Is it? Should politicians only appear on podcasts of people they agree with 100%? Should they only take interviews with friendly interviewers? No, they should appear on adversarial podcasts to have adversarial conversations and friendly podcasts to have friendly conversations. What worries me is when they have a friendly conversation with someone I consider adversarial. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1159 "2026-09-15T16:58:16Z")
Not at all. I think I’m saying the opposite. I don’t know whether Mamdani asked for Piker’s endorsement, or simply had a friendly chat with him, thought nothing of it and later wanted to distance himself. It doesn’t matter to me either way. It’s a thing that happened. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738/1160 "2026-09-15T16:59:31Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > That very much depends on what you mean by “campaigning with”. > > And it also depends when and if the someone walked back that statement, and depends a little on exactly what his claim was. No, I really don’t think it does. If you asked me where it would be appropriate to campaign with someone who says that black people deserved slavery, I wouldn’t hem and haw and hedge my language and pontificate about it with a giant wall of text. I’d say that it’s absolutely not appropriate to campaign with them. Saying that America deserved 9/11 is not quite the same thing, but it’s in the same ballpark for sure. And I think in a vacuum you probably agree, which is why this conversation feels so gaslighty. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738.md?page=57) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-babale/1016738.md?page=59)